Future Directions and Molecular Basis of Ventilator Associated Pneumonia

Mechanical ventilation is a lifesaving treatment and has complications such as ventilator associated pneumonia (VAP) that lead to high morbidity and mortality. Moreover VAP is the second most common hospital-acquired infection in pediatric intensive care units. Although it is still not well understood, understanding molecular pathogenesis is essential for preventing and treating pneumonia. A lot of microbes are detected as a causative agent of VAP. The most common isolated VAP pathogens in pediatric patients are Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and other gram negative bacteria. All of the bacteria have different pathogenesis due to their different virulence factors and host reactions. This review article focused on mechanisms of VAP with molecular pathogenesis of the causative bacteria one by one from the literature. We hope that we know more about molecular pathogenesis of VAP and we can investigate and focus on the management of the disease in near future.